What is Harmonic Distortion?

Harmonic distortion is found in both the voltage and the current

waveform. Most current distortion is generated by electronic loads,
also called non-linear loads. These non-linear loads might be single
phase loads such as point-of-sale terminals, or three-phase as in
variable speed drives.
As the current distortion is conducted through
the normal system wiring, it creates voltage
distortion according to Ohm's Law. While
current distortion travels only along the power
path of the non-linear load, voltage distortion
affects all loads connected to that particular bus
or phase.
Current distortion affects the power system and
distribution equipment. It may directly or
indirectly cause the destruction of loads or loss
of product. From the direct perspective, current
distortion may cause transformers to overheat
and fail even though they are not fully loaded.
Conduc tors and conduit systems can also
overheat leading to open circuits and downtime.
On three-phase wye systems, current distortion causes higher than
expected currents in shared neutrals. A shared neutral is one that
provides the return path for two or three-phases. Currents as high as
200% of the phase conductors have been seen in the field. This large
level of current can easily burn up the neutral creating an open neutral
environment.
This open neutral creates voltage swells and overvoltages. These
voltage conditions easily destroy equipment, particularly power
supplies.
Another indirect problem introduced by current distortion is called
resonance. Certain current harmonics may excite resonant frequencies
in the system. This resonance can cause extremely high harmonic
voltages, possibly damaging equipment.
There is one additional comment about current distortion. When the
current is non-sinusoidal, our conventional ammeters and voltmeters
will not respond accurately. To accurately measure currents that are
harmonically distorted, use a True-RMS meter. This applies equally to

distorted voltages.
Voltage distortion, on the other hand, directly affects loads. Distorted
voltage can cause motors to overheat and vibrate excessively. It can
also cause damage to the motor shaft.
Even non-linear loads are prey to voltage distortion. Equipment
ranging from computers to electronically-ballasted fluorescent lights
may be damaged by voltage distortion.
If damage occurs due to current distortion, except for high neutral
current, then one solution is to reduce the distortion. There are three
methods for this. First, a passive filter can be used to reduce the
current from one or two specific harmonics.
In the second method, an active filter reduces all the h armonic
currents. It is more costly and complex to use, but it works better than
passive filters.
The third method involves the use of transformers. Delta-wye
transformers reduce certain harmonics, particularly what are called
zero sequence harmonics. Zig-zag transformers can also be used to
reduce zero sequence harmonics, but without changing the system
type between delta and wye. In addition, they can help reduce high
neutral currents.
If there is concern that these special transformers or the regular
distribution transformers may overheat, then transformer derating, or
the use of K-rated transformers, is recommended.
If high neutral currents are the culprit, then the first step is to eliminate
shared neutrals wherever possible. Where this cannot be done, try
oversizing the neutral wire so it won't overheat. If this doesn't work,
then the distortion must be reduced as described above.
There are two ways to reduce voltage distortion. Remember that
internal voltage distortion is the result of the business's non-linear
loads interacting with the wiring. The first way to reduce the distortion
is to reduce the harmonic current.
The second way is to reduce the impedance of the wiring. This is done
by increasing the size of the conductors.
Where the total voltage distortion is the sum of internal and external
distortion, these techniques reduce the internal contribution.

MOST COMMON CAUSES

While motor drives and commercial power supplies are most often
blamed for harmonics, the most likely culprits in the typical commercial
power system is "switched-mode-power-supplies" such as those seen
in personal computers and other electronically driven devices.
The typical office can have as much as 50% of its load being
determined by devices of this type.
What are harmonics?...
With more and more electronic devices being used the term harmonics comes into use.
Harmonics should be taken seriously but they are not the only cause of your electrical
problems. If you have tried everything and you are still having problems and you have a
lot of electronic devices it is something to think about. Any distortions in the voltage or
current wave causes harmonics. We can give you a lot of technical explantions on what
harmonics are but the intention of this website is to help everyone understand electrical
terms not cause more confusion. In fact a lot of people (including myself) in the electrical
trade are not exactly sure how harmonics effect electrical circuits.
These harmonic currents create heat. This heat over a period of time, will raise the
temperature of the neutral conductor causing nuisance tripping of circuit breakers,
overvoltage problems, blinking of Incandescent Lights, computer malfunctions etc.
Among the electrical devices that seem to cause harmonics are Personal Computers,
Dimmers, Laser Printers, Electronic Ballast, Stereos, Radios, TVs, Fax Machines, and
any other equipment powered by switched-mode power supply (SMPS) equipment. This
is not to say that harmonics will cause all these problems, only that it is possible.
You can somewhat prevent these problems by using a dedicated circuit for electronic
equipment. Also on a branch circuit use an isolated ground wire for sensitive electronic
and computer equipment. A more expensive way is to rectify and filter the mains thus
effectively removing all low frequency harmonics including the fundamental. Oversized
neutrals is another possible means to prevent overheating of this wire. In power
distribution systems electricians are usually interested in measuring the current, thus a
"true-RMS" current measuring clamp-on meter is normally used.
Harmonics: It surfaced as a buzzword in the early 1980s, making many people reconsider
the effectiveness of their building's wiring system. Yet, many still view the concept as a
relatively new phenomenon. However, harmonics have been around since well before the
early '80s: The associated problems existed in the electrical world way back when
transistor tubes were first used in the 1930s. Aside from grounding, many deem
harmonics as one of the greatest concerns for the power quality industry today. In this
issue, we'll discuss the fundamentals of harmonics and the problems it can cause within
the premises wiring system.
What is harmonics? We define harmonics as voltages or currents at frequencies that are
a multiple of the fundamental frequency. In most systems, the fundamental frequency is

60 Hz. Therefore, harmonic order is 120 Hz, 180 Hz, 240 Hz and so on. (For European
countries with 50 Hz systems, the harmonic order is 100 Hz, 150 Hz, 200 Hz, etc.)
We usually specify these orders by their harmonic number or multiple of the fundamental
frequency. For example, a harmonic with a frequency of 180 Hz is known as the third
harmonic (60x3 = 180). In this case, for every cycle of the fundamental waveform, there
are three complete cycles of the harmonic waveforms. The even multiples of the
fundamental frequency are known as even-order harmonics while the odd multiples are
known as the odd-order harmonics.
How do we create harmonics? Up until 1980, all loads were known as linear. This
means if the voltage input to a piece of equipment is a sine wave, the resultant current
waveform generated by the load is also a sine wave, as seen in Fig. 1 (in the original
text).
In 1981, manufacturers of electronic hardware converted to an efficient type of internal
power supply known as a switch-mode power supply (SMPS). The SMPS converts the
applied voltage sine wave to a distorted current waveform that resembles alternating
current pulses, as seen in Fig. 2 (in the original text). Obviously, the load doesn't exhibit a
constant impedance throughout the applied AC voltage waveform.
Most utilization equipment today creates harmonics. In all likelihood, if a device converts
AC power to DC power (or vice versa) as part of its steady-state operation, it's considered
a harmonic current-generating device. These include uninterruptible power supplies,
copiers, PCs, etc.
What are the effects of harmonics? The biggest problem with harmonics is voltage
waveform distortion. You can calculate a relationship between the fundamental and
distorted waveforms by finding the square root of the sum of the squares of all harmonics
generated by a single load, and then dividing this number by the nominal 60 Hz
waveform value. You do this by a mathematical calculation known as a Fast Fourier
Transform (FFT) theorem. (FFT is beyond the scope of this article. IEEE's Standard
Dictionary of Electrical and Electronic Terms gives a definition of Fourier series.) This
calculation method determines the total harmonic distortion (THD) contained within a
nonlinear current or voltage waveform.
Triplen harmonics. Electronic equipment generates more than one harmonic frequency.
For example, computers generate 3rd, 9th, and 15th harmonics. These are known as
triplen harmonics. They are of a greater concern to engineers and building designers
because they do more than distort voltage waveforms. They can overheat the building
wiring, cause nuisance tripping, overheat transformer units, and cause random end-user
equipment failure.
Circuit overloading. Harmonics can cause overloading of conductors and transformers
and overheating of utilization equipment, such as motors. Triplen harmonics can
especially caus e overheating of neutral conductors on 3-phase, 4-wire systems. While the

fundamental frequency and even harmonics cancel out in the neutral conductor, oddorder harmonics are additive. Even in a balanced load condition, neutral currents can
reach magnitudes as high as 1.73 times the average phase current.
This additional loading creates more heat, which breaks down the insulation of the
neutral conductor. In some cases, it can break down the insulation between windings of a
transformer. In both cases, the result is a fire hazard. But, you can diminish this potential
damage by using sound wiring practices.
When most electrical engineers design the building's wiring, they usually leave the sizing
of the neutral conductor to the dictates of NEC. In most cases, the installed neutral is the
same size as the phase conductors. However, the Notes to the Ampacity Tables (in NEC
Art. 310) instruct you to consider the neutral conductor as a current-carrying conductor if
electronic equipment or electronic ballasts are used at the site. This correlates into the
neutral conductors being sized larger than they would be with conventional wiring means.
To be on the safe side, more engineers are doubling the size of the neutral conductor for
feeder circuits to panelboards and branch circuit partition wiring to handle the additive
harmonic currents.